This rich and spicy Cascabel Mole combines cascabel chile peppers with ancho chiles for a mole that’s deep in flavor and perfect for braising meat!
Cascabel chile peppers popped up at my local market and I couldn’t pass them up. Once I had them in my hands I knew that they were destined for a really good mole.
A really spicy mole.
These cascabel chiles combine with ancho chiles – peppers with a mix of rich raisin, chocolate flavor. The result is an explosion of taste in a mole that’s great for topping on burritos or tamales.
Or go a step further and keep the mole in the pot and toss in your meat. Braise the meat for a few hours and let the flavors sink in to create an overwhelmingly flavorful dinner.
This mole is packed full of flavors – spoon over burritos, rice, tamales or even meat, or use it as a braising sauce. Every mole is inherently different – but deep down, they all contain a variety of nuts, chiles and other ingredients. This one is certainly a great one that’ll find a permanent spot in your kitchen.
Cascabel Mole Recipe
The list of ingredients for this mole is rather long! Don’t cut back or skimp, because each and every ingredient plays a rather huge part in the final flavor.
Once you have your onions, chiles, sesame seeds and almonds roasted the rest of the recipe is easy peasy. Let simmer on the stove, then push through a sieve and back into the clean pot.
Add in the remaining ingredients and allow the flavors to come together for a few additional minutes. For a thinner mole, add more water, otherwise, you have two options:
- add your meat directly to the pot and braise until cooked through
- or jar up in pint canning jars and until ready to serve
When refrigerated, the mole should last up to 3 days. Or freeze for longer storage.
Cascabel Mole
Ingredients
- 1/4 C olive oil or lard/tallow
- 1 onion sliced into rings
- 4 oz ancho chiles dried
- 2 oz whole cascabel chiles
- 1/4 C sesame seeds divided
- 1/4 C sliced almonds
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp ground oregano
- 1/2 tsp ground clove
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 5 C chicken broth
- 1/2 C water
- 1 lime juice only
- 4 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp Maseca corn flour
- 3 oz unsweetened dark chocolate chopped
- 2 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Slice onions into thick rings. Lay on the griddle on high heat to char on each side. Set aside.
- Turn that same griddle down to low/medium. Remove the stems from the the anchos and cascabel peppers and lay them on the hot griddle. Press them with your spatula against the hot griddle to toast them. Don't burn them though (they'll be bitter!) If you see them start to smoke, pull them off. Set them aside.
- On the same griddle, toast the almonds - remove, set aside. Then toast the sesame seeds - once they start to brown, pull them off.
- Put your oil (or, lard/tallow) in a heavy bottom pot or dutch oven. When it's hot, add the onions, chiles, almonds, sesame seeds, garlic, cinnamon stick, oregano, pepper and clove. Let all of those ingredients fry up for a few minutes. Then add the chicken broth, cover, and let simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Pour into your blender and blend it hard until it's smooth. Pour it through a sieve/strainer back into your rinsed out pot. Add the water, lime juice, honey, sugar, corn flour, chocolate, and salt.
- Let simmer an additional 5-10 minutes, until the flavors come together. Add more salt as needed. Jar up and use for topping burritos or tamales, or add meat directly to the pot and braise in the liquid as it cooks.
Notes
- Ancho chiles are essential for this recipe. They have a unique flavor that combines dark, rich, chocolatey raisin notes.
- Use beef broth if chicken is not available.
Nutrition
Have you ever cooked with cascabel peppers or spotted them at your market?
If you give this recipe a try, please leave a comment, rate the recipe and be sure to tag me on Instagram!
Leave a Reply